6 Advantages and Disadvantages of Eating Beetroot

Beetroot might look a little rugged, but many people are seeing some benefits from eating it. Not only that it is packed with nutrients and tastes sweet, it is also versatile when it comes to how you prepare it—you can eat it by including it in your salad, roasting it with other root vegetables, picking and jarring, and even pureeing it into your smoothie. But while the beetroot has its benefits as a power food, it also comes with some side-effects that are difficult to ignore. Here are the pros and cons of eating it:

List of Pros of Eating Beetroot

1. It helps improve your vitality.
Beetroot is a source of nutrients that can help boost your vitality, such as iron and folic acid, which are used in folk medicine in treating blood disorders. According to nutritional experts, its juice is also useful in treating polio and hepatitis. Some studies even concluded that beetroot contains striking anti-cancer properties. All these things mean that it can help your body fight against certain conditions, while helping it to function properly.

2. It helps lower your blood pressure.
According to research, consuming juice from beetroot lowered systolic blood pressure, which is a benefit attributed to the naturally occurring nitrates in this crop, which are then converted into nitric oxide in the body. In turn, this compound helps relax and dilate the blood vessels, leading to improved blood flow and lowered blood pressure levels.

3. It can boost your stamina.
If you are working out and need a boost to make it through your next session, then beetroot juice would prove useful. It is found that drinking it before exercising will give you more stamina to endure longer sessions. Again, this benefit is attributed to the production of nitric oxide, which reduces the cost of oxygen during low-intensity exercises and enhances tolerance to high-intensity exercises.

List of Cons of Eating Beetroot

1. It can be bad for those suffering from kidney stones.
As beetroot contains a high amount of oxalates, you should avoid it when you are suffering from kidney stones. Also, when buying readily-cooked beetroot, try to choose one that is not preserved with vinegar, as it add to the risk factor.

2. It poses risk to those having some kind of iron and copper condition.
If you suffer from Wilson disease or hemochromatosis, you should avoid consuming beetroot in large amounts, as it can lead to accumulation of iron and copper in your body. While Wilson disease does not allow you to lose excess copper, hemochromatosis is a condition of iron overload in your body.

3. It can cause beeturia.
It was found that people who had red urine and coloration of blood had suffered from such a condition after consuming beetroot. This condition is known as beeturia.

If you think that eating beetroot is good for you, you can go ahead and enjoy it to your heart’s content. However, if you think that you will be prone to its side-effects, then it might be best to stay away from it.